


Visiting Sons

by fishfingersandjellybabies



Category: Batman (Comics), Nightwing (Comics)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-10
Updated: 2017-05-10
Packaged: 2018-10-30 03:44:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10868382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fishfingersandjellybabies/pseuds/fishfingersandjellybabies
Summary: He’d called himself Damian’s father. Did Damian’s real father know about that?





	Visiting Sons

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like the reason Dick never acted on/mentioned what he thought Damian’s role in his life was, was because of Bruce. So. Here’s some post Nightwing #20 trash.

He doesn’t know why he was nervous. He was just going home. Hadn’t been there in a while. Alfred would be there. And Damian.

And Bruce.

…He wondered if Damian told him what he’d said, that night on the rooftop, after everything. He wondered if Damian told Bruce about the mission at all, that he’d been almost killed by his father’s old enemy Dr. Simon Hurt.

He wondered if Damian would even have to tell him at all, or if he already blatantly knew.

When he pulled up to the estate, he barely had time to turn off his motorcycle’s engine before he heard the front door swing open, and looked up to find Damian already barreling down the front steps to greet him.

And despite all his worry, it made him smile, and he hastily dismounted to catch his brother as soon as he was close enough.

Damian didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to of course; his tight grip around Dick’s neck said enough.

“Missed you.” Dick whispered himself, though, as he held Damian just as closely. “Doing good?”

“Well enough.” Damian hummed, even as Dick reluctantly put him down. “I’m…I have a new friend.”

“Oh yeah?” Dick grinned, even as Damian began to lead him back to the house. “Do I know them?”

“I don’t think you’ve met him, but it’s Superman’s son.” Damian said, almost sheepish. “His name is Jonathan, and he’s an imbecile.”

“He sounds great.” Dick snorted. “I sense your friendship will go incredibly far.”

“Hm.” Damian murmured as they climbed the steps. “I only inform you because he will be calling soon, and I…must take it.”

Dick opened the door. “What’s he calling for?”

“Help.” Damian said grimly. “…With his… _homework_.”

Dick grinned. “You’re a great person, Damian.”

“Nonsense.” Damian’s face was heating up. “I merely made a promise, and not even your arrival will allow me to break that.”

“I reiterate.” Dick emphasized, ruffling Damian’s hair as they walked through the front door, a phone already ringing somewhere in the house. “You’re a great person, kiddo.”

“And _I_ reiterate. A promise is a promise, even when my brother returns for once in months.” Damian began to jog away, even as they heard Alfred answer the call. He glanced over his shoulder though. “Father is in the parlor, and I’m sure he wants to see you just as much as the rest of us do!”

Dick kept his smile, and waved until Damian was in the kitchen. Then he frowned, and looked nervously towards the room.

…He was being ridiculous.

He inhaled sharply, though, and stepped towards the room.

Bruce was sitting on the sofa, next to a clearly newly-vacated cocoon of pillows and a blanket, where Alfred the cat still sat. He was reading a book, and didn’t look up even when he heard Dick appear.

“We’re lucky it was actually you this time.” Bruce smirked, turning a page. “He was getting up at every sound from outside. You couldn’t tell the difference between him and Titus for the last hour.”

“Sounds cute.” Dick tried to smile, but his stomach was churning, and he felt like he was about to be scolded, like back when he was a kid. “…How’s he been?”

“Been?” Bruce still didn’t look up. “What do you mean? Like, since that last mission with you?”

Dick swallowed the sudden lump in his throat. “Y-yeah…”

“Fine. He recovered from the stab wound well enough, and the gunshot wound healed nicely.” Bruce continued politely. “Mentally, we’ve talked about what happened, and he seems to be alright there too.”

“You guys talked about it?” Dick practically breathed. “All of it?”

“We talked about what he wanted to talk about.” Bruce said simply. “We talked about Pyg and the Dollotron copies he made of the two of you. He admitted it made him feel replaceable again. We also talked about Simon Hurt, and his history with him from before. The injuries Hurt inflicted on him.”

Stop.

“We didn’t talk about anything you said to him.” Bruce said, quieter. “Good or bad.”

“…Oh.” Dick muttered. His nerves weren’t settled, though. Especially as Bruce sighed, and slowly closed his book. “By your choice or his?”

“His.” Bruce hummed, staring at the book’s covered. “He said they were personal conversations between the two of you and I didn’t need to know. I agreed.”

“…Makes sense.” Dick returned carefully.

“Mhm.” Bruce nodded. Sighed again. “Dick?”

“What?”

Finally, Bruce looked up. “Why didn’t you fight for him?”

Dick’s heartbeat sped up. “Bruce, I did. I did _everything_ I could to get him back from Hurt.”

“Not this, not this.” Bruce said gently, waving it off. “I mean…back then.”

“Back then?”

“When he was your Robin.” Bruce whispered.

Dick waited. Then: “Bruce, you said he didn’t tell you anything we talked about.”

“He didn’t.” Bruce promised. “He didn’t need to.”

Dick struggled for a second, opening and closing his mouth over and over. “Bruce…he’s _your_ son. I…It wasn’t…”

“But you love him just as much.” Bruce cut off. “I know that. I’ve _always_ known that.”

“Bruce…”

“Do you think I would have been angry, if you wanted to keep him as your partner, or under your guardianship?” Bruce asked. It was unnerving how… _not mad_ Bruce was. How reasonable he was being. “I wouldn’t have been. I’d have listened to what you had to say. I might’ve even agreed with you, and let you keep him.”

“He needed…” Dick’s throat was dry. “He needed his _father_. I know that. I _knew_ that, even then. It wasn’t my place to-”

“And he would have had one.” Bruce cut off once more. “Dick, I know what he is to you.”

Dick’s chest tightened. His heart fluttered, and his soul hurt.

“I’m sorry.” Dick gasped, running his hand across his eyes. He heard the book tossed onto the cushions and Bruce stand. “Bruce, I’m sorry, I- I know it’s selfish. I know it’s not my place-”

“Dick.” A hand on his shoulder. “It’s not that. It’s not that at all.” A pause, a fatherly one, as Bruce waited for Dick to look up at him. And when he did, Bruce smiled. “I’m glad. Really. I’m _glad_ he has you as well as me. To protect him, to love him. To listen to him when I’m too much of a fool to.”

“It’s my honor to.” Dick smiled sadly. “You know that.”

“I just…” Bruce sighed, and looked away. “I just wish you would have told me. I wish you wouldn’t have let me hurt you like this. It was never my intention.”

“It’s not about me, Bruce. It’s _never_ been about me, and I never wanted it to be.” Dick chuckled exhaustedly. “It was always about what was best for _Damian_.”

“It’s about what’s best for _all_ of you.” Bruce corrected, pulling Dick into his arms. Dick jumped into the embrace without hesitation. “…Don’t feel guilty for loving him so much, Dick.”

“Then don’t feel guilty about me either.” Dick sniffed. “…I wasn’t ready back then to be a dad. To be _his_ dad. I didn’t want to let him go, but I knew it’d be the _best_ thing for him, staying with you.”

“I think he’d disagree.” Bruce hummed in amusement. “…But we’ll work on letting you two see each other more often. I promise.”

“I want to see _you_ too, old man.” Dick demanded, squeezing Bruce tighter.

He felt Bruce shift to look over his head. “We’ll make it work.”

Before Dick could respond, he heard loud, running footsteps. “Father, I need to borrow the Batmobile and take it to the Kents.”

“Is that so?” Bruce asked. Dick twisted in his arms to look back at Damian.

“Yes. Jonathan doesn’t believe me in the importance of science and mathematics, so I need to show him…” Damian paused as he came into the room. Looked at the two of them embracing. “…What are you two doing?”

“Slow dancing.” Dick joked. Bruce snorted. “Want to join?”

“Absolutely _not_.” Damian scoffed. Dick laughed and moved out of Bruce’s arms. Snatched Damian up before the younger could sneak away and perched him on his hip. “Grayson…!”

“Just give me a minute, kiddo.” Dick whispered, going back to Bruce, and holding Damian between them, while wrapping his free arm back around Bruce. Bruce didn’t hesitate, hugging both Dick and Damian at the same time. “Okay?”

Damian glanced up at Bruce, who silently nodded. Damian sighed, as if he was suffering, but both Bruce and Dick smiled when he completed the group hug, wrapping an arm around each of their necks.

“…You two are _ridiculous_.” Damian mumbled after a moment. Both Dick and Bruce laughed, and without warning or planning, they both kissed Damian’s cheeks.

“But you love us anyway.” Dick hummed smugly.

Damian, face instantly tomato red, just huffed, poutily holding both of his fathers closer.


End file.
